which schools emphasize osteopathic principles

[jimjones]

Which are the schools that seem to really emphasize the osteopathic principles, and which are more M.D. in their curriculum?

I've been looking at the curriculum on the internet and some of the schools, DMU in particular, have very little info on the curriculum. Thanks

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[jswed]

I went to COMP's osteopathic medicine awareness conference and they said that they empasized it more than other schools.

 

[jswed]

I went to COMP's osteopathic medicine awareness conference and they said that they empasized it more than other schools.

 

[Hskermdic]

Kirksville definately emphasizes the osteopathic principles.

 

[kidterrific]

DMU all the way. Different schools stress different principles of Osteopathy (and it's up to you to decide when you interview), but DMU takes the cake.

I haven't met one student YET who thinks that they made a mistake in choosing DMU (when it comes to OMM).

DMU has OMM lectures and labs every week you are in school. Our OMM director is really dedicated, and his enthusiasm carries into the class every lecture he gives. He gets very personal with the entire student body and makes it impossible to not want to learn. If you have any specific questions, let me know.

 

[Toran]

KCOM has the largest collection of OMM gurus on the planet. It is the originating school of OMM, and has kept the reputation ever since. KCOM unlike DMU, has research in OMM to further the scope and science of OMM.
I am jaded, however so will most of the other posters here.
COMP, and TUCOM have very little OMM from my experience.
As far as the MD approach I am not sure what you mean, however KCOM has the most contact hours out of any medical school in the US.
Please be sure why you would want to go to an Osteopathic school rather than an Allopathic counterpart, otherwise you might regret your decision.

Toran

 

[jimjones]

Thanks for replies. Its difficult to research it on the internet because of the limited info out there. TUCOM's posted curriculum is hard to read... It has like 5 credits of OMM and like 20 of Osteopathic principles of science, or something like that, which covers all the physiology.
Other schools like AZCOM have very detailed curriculum sections on the web, and list, say, 3 hours per week OMM and the rest looks like any M.D. curriculum.
I really want to learn the OMM stuff. And I want it to be as scientific and progressive as possible. I've watched it bieng performed and would love to have those skills. But I also want to learn as much of the sciences as an M.D. does.

 

[B_ADAMS]

I know PCSOM is the newest school of the 19, but they also have the Godfather of OMT teaching there. His name is Dr. Ed Stiles. Put his name in a search engine and see what you get. The man is amazing.

 

[jimjones]

Ahh, but alas, PCOM has preference to Kentucky and Appalachan (sp?) residents, and so I will likely not return the secondary. Thanks for replying though.

Can anyone else add to the debate of which school offers the best OMT training?

 

[Toran]

do a search on SDN, there have been many debates...

 

[Qi Whiz]

I've been told the best for OMT are UNECOM, NYCOM, WVSOM, DMU, KCOM, AND TCOM.

 

[dude7]

MSUCOM is still a strong osteopathic medical school, but can compete with any allopathic school. NOt saying others can, but MSUCOM students are more MD oriented in my opinion.

 

[prolixless]

I've talked to a few OMM faculty at my school about this and they said all of the osteopathic medical schools for the most part emphasize an equal quality of instruction in osteopathic priniciples and practices. Some may offer a little more OP&P and some may offer a little less, but the differences are inconsequential because one's knowledge of OP&P, like other subjects, is often dependent on how motivated he/she is to practice and apply it. Does he/she learn the facts and "moves" of OP&P just so he/she can pass the exams or does he/she actually continue to practice and apply OP&P long after the exams are over? It's simply too difficult to argue that one osteopathic medical school can somehow train you better in OP&P compared to another. The bottom line is that each osteopathic medical school will give you an equally solid foundation in OP&P and it is then up to you to decide how far you want to integrate OP&P into your medical practice.

 

[R. Dale Jackson]

Originally posted by dude7:
•MSUCOM is still a strong osteopathic medical school, but can compete with any allopathic school. NOt saying others can, but MSUCOM students are more MD oriented in my opinion.•

...And who are you DUDE7? I vehemently disagree with your opinion (i.e. MSUCOM students are more MD oriented...). I am a hardcore-DO-wanabee and choose MSU-COM because it is a leader in osteopathic medical education. For those of you from other schools who may be reading this, from day one of orientation OP&P has been heavily emphasized here at MSUCOM.

In fact, at the start of our physiology course, we had two days of lecture on "wholism" and the biomedical paradigm. Wholism has five dimensions: interacting organ systems, levels of organization--Bio-psycho-social-model, structure and function, time and spiritual/metaphysical/mystical. The professor presented it very well by placing a portrait of an elderly women on the screen and then going over her case history. He tied all aspects of her illness, self and life together. (...and yes we also had introductory OMM classes the first week as well.)
Now, as most know, we share our basic medical science courses with MSU allopathic students. Well, one of the allopathic students asked, "why do we need to know this?" I realize this is a stereotypical/very-generalized comment, but I can think of no better example to explain the difference between allopathic and osteopathic medical students. I discussed this opinion with several of my colleagues and they concurred.
Respectfully,
Dale

 

[OldManDave]

I hate burst anyone's bubble -- but all of the DO schools emphasize the various aspects of 'DO-ness'...now, each school may place more or less value on specific characteristics of 'DO-ness'. The trick to being the most content with the medical school you choose to attend, be it DO or MD, is to find one that fits your personality. Therein lies the rub!

(Would you buy an poorly fitting interview suit and hope to grow into it? Hell no, you select one of the bat that fits well or have IT tailored to fit YOU!)

Furthermore, and all the OMM/DO-hardcore-church members may attempt to rain down hell-fire and damnation on me for saying this...the way you interact with & treat (holistic medicine)patients & your 'style' of doctoring is much much more a function of "you" the person who dwells within your skin. Your patient - physician relations will be highly influenced by and largely an extension of your own interpersonal relationship skills and tendancies & these are things that can not be taught in a classroom; but must be learned by experiencing life.

In 15+ years of working w/i the allied health professions prior to medical school, I have encountered highly "osteopathic" MDs & DOs and some major MD & DO @$$holes. Believe me, the school or medical education paradigm had little to do with how "ostepathic" they were.

My word of advice to all of you struggling with this rhetorical question: find something more noteworthy and substantiable to expend your excess energies upon. There are many community clinics out there who could use your extra time, effort & talents helping the underprivileged...go volunteer.

Once you're out in the clinical real-world, your physician peers, allied health professions colleagues and, most importantly, your patients could give a rat's @$$ about the alphabet soup behind your sig. More than likely, with the classic doc's sig, they won't be able to read it anyhow. You will have to earn your stripes and their respect thru performance, empathy and compassion -- those are far more strenuous and applicable markers of success as a physician than some silly-@$$ed initials behind your signature!

My humble opinion...

 

[prolixless]

"Holistic Medicine" is such a vague and broad-sweeping term that I think it's misleading to equate osteopathic medicine with it. Perhaps it's more accurate to call osteopathy a strain of holistic medicine. . .but while we're at it, let's call allopathy a strain of holistic medicine since it is presently trying to incorparate psychosocialspiritual aspects into its medical model. In any case, osteopathic medicine is not only treating patients from a psychosocialspiritual perspective, and it is not only treating patients according to an integrated organ systems model, but it also entails a foundational belief that the muscular-skeletal system plays an enormous role in health. This latter perspective is what today theoretically separates osteopathy and allopathy. To approach medicine from a worldview that places great significance on the muscular-skeletal system's role in health, one must actually attend an institution that teaches him/her how to do this. Under this model, the muscular-skeletal system becomes a significant effector organ of deviations from health. I would venture to guess that very few background life-experiences or personality characteristics can cause someone to practice medicine according to this kind of medical model. In other words, this medical model must be taught--it is not innate. That is not to say that excellent physicina qualities like compassion, friendliness, empathy etc. can be taught. Granted these kinds of physician qualities come from life's experiences and personality characteristics. But these qualities are not equivalent to osteopathy.

 

[osteodoc13]

As a 4th year COMP student, I have to take umbrage with those who stated that COMP has a poor OMM dept. While I agree that your education in osteopathy is largely dependent on your attitude, the program at COMP exposes the student to the most techniques of any school I have come across. I think that most students will, if they are at all interested in OMM, come across a technique or way of approaching the patient that they feel comfortable with and can get good results. The only way to know what technique is right for you is to be exposed, and COMP provides that in spades. The only common technique we weren't taught in class is functional technique, and that is probably because it is very dependent on your ability to palpate, thus it is not a good technique to teach to beginners. Not to mention our school is one of the only ones to have a full 40-hour cranial course which is accepted by the Cranial Academy and Sutherland Teaching Foundation. It is taught every year by Viola Frymann, who is one of the few DOs alive who learned directly from Sutherland. What a resource.

OK, enough school pride. But I didn't want to let a rub against my school pass by.


BTW: if you want to bash our other curriculum, go ahead!

 

[muonwhiz]

I attend AZCOM and can tell you that the osteopathic outlook is emphasised. Ocasionally it is mentioned in basic science classes, frequently in anatomy and all of our clinical classes are taught by DO's who emphasise this philosophy. I suspect that most of the other schools are similar, with differences being of degree and not of kind. Going to any osteopathic school will put you in a position to learn all that you want of the osteopathic philosophy and OMM. It is up to you to take advantage of it. Good luck!

 

[Diane L. Evans]

Note I will only comment on what I know first-hand.
When I applied I wanted the best of both worlds. Having research (being more MD like????????) experience was important to me TCOM, OU-COM and NJSOM were on my list in addition to UHS.

If to you being more MD like is curriculm I can shed light on my school:
UHS has switched to a systems approach: treatment/diagnostic cases that will stick with you more than memorizing basic sci facts in a traditional basic science program. UHS also has many research labs and 15 ongoing clinical trails. Students have volunteered time to participate in labs. Currently 2 new research building are in the plans of development.

In addition, UHS has a lot of OMT in its program when I went through, it was 7 hrs/wk year one and 4 hrs/week year two. Labs are held weekly and consist of 3 hours of techniques. The only other school of which I know that has more OMT is Kirsville.

You can make the most of any school you attend. May it be gaining research expereince or learning OMT or both.

Good luck
D

Note these are only opinions "the best school" will differ from reader-reader.